Affordable Counselling

Our Affordable Counselling Service uses qualified volunteer counsellors and supervised trainees at an advanced stage of their training. Counselling is a process that requires a considerable commitment and dedication. To use and benefit from the service you need to attend reliably weekly 50 minute appointments, almost always on the same day at the same time. We have only limited ability to accommodate shift workers. The service operates on weekdays from 9 – 5pm, with only limited opportunities to be seen outside of these times. There is a fee for this service based on ability to pay, and the fee will be discussed at assessment.

You can request an assessment for this service by calling 01732 744950 or using our secure online referral form below. If you prefer, you can also download a PDF form which you can print and fill in by hand, or fill in electronically. When we have received your assessment request, if it seems that we can offer the right kind of help we will contact you to arrange a free assessment appointment with a senior counsellor from the service. If it seems that we are not the right kind of help we will contact you to signpost other sources of help.

There is a very high demand for this popular service, and unfortunately a waiting list. Currently you can expect to wait approximately 10 weeks for an assessment, and about 20 weeks before counselling can begin.

Counselling assessment request

Referral checklist

Are you in crisis and needing urgent help today?*

Yes

No

Please click on this link for guidance on a mental health crisis. Our counselling service is not the right kind of support for a crisis.

Is your main problem managing your drug and/or alcohol use?*

Yes

No

CGL provide support to anyone who has problems with drugs and alcohol and you can self-refer via the CGL website. Our counselling service is not the right kind of help when the main issue is drug/alcohol use.

Are you looking for couples counselling?*

Yes

No

We are not currently able to offer couples counselling. Please visit the Relate website for information about relationship counselling.

Are you currently seeing a counsellor or psychotherapist?*

Yes

No

We cannot offer counselling while you are seeing another counsellor or psychotherapist. You will need to end or suspend other therapy, or if it is time-limited we may be able to hold a place for you until your therapy has ended.*

I agree to this

I do not agree to this

Sorry - in line with generally accepted best practice we will not see a client who is simultaneously seeing another psychological therapist. We believe this condition to be in your own best interests.

We ask counselling clients to be reliable in attending regular WEEKLY sessions IN PERSON at one of our centres in Sevenoaks or Tonbridge. Sessions are held on weekdays 9-5. We have a limited number of evening slots available, for which there may be a longer waiting list. Will this be a problem for you?*

Yes

No

In order to make the best use of our volunteers and therapy rooms we can offer only weekly sessions in person at our centres. We are not able to offer counselling via Skype or telephone, nor can we offer sessions fortnightly or less frequently. These services may be offered by our associate counsellors or by professional counsellors who can be found on directories such as the Counselling Directory or RSCPP.

Our service receives no funding and so we must charge a fee for each counselling session (the assessment session is free). The exact fee will be discussed at assessment, but as a guide the minimum fee is £10. Will this be a problem for you?*

Yes

No

Free time-limited psychological therapy is available through the NHS programme called IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapy). The provider in this area is ThinkAction and you can self-refer to the service from the Thinkaction website.

There is a very high demand for this service, and unfortunately this can mean a long waiting list. Currently the waiting list is around 5 months. Is this too long for you to wait?*

Yes

No

We regret the length of our waiting list and we are constantly looking to respond to the ever-increasing demand on our service.
You may find a shorter waiting time with the free NHS time-limited psychological therapy service called IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapy). The provider in this area is ThinkAction and you can self-refer to the service from the Thinkaction website.
Alternatively if you are able to afford private counselling, you can arrange therapy through our associate counsellors or look for a therapist on a directory such as the Counselling Directory or RSCPP.

A note on Data Protection

Clicking the button below will take you to a referral form hosted on a very secure system called Bacpac, where we will ask for your personal information. We take your privacy seriously and are committed to compliance with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). More information about this can be found in our Privacy Notice.

Private Counselling & Psychotherapy

In addition to our affordable counselling service, we have a team of qualified and experienced “associate” counsellors who are in good standing with us through their work as volunteer therapists, trainers, and facilitators. Our associates offer private counselling and psychotherapy from our Wellbeing centres in Sevenoaks and Tonbridge. Visit our Associate Counsellors Directory page to find out more.

By using the private services of our associates you are also supporting the work of West Kent Mind through the room rental fees.

NHS Therapy

Free time-limited therapy, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), is available on the NHS through the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme. IAPT works with people suffering from mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders, depression and trauma. From 1 December 2017 all IAPT face-to-face psychological therapy is provided by Thinkaction.

If you feel that your problem is of an urgent or critical nature, for example if you are feeling actively suicidal, you are self-harming or if you think you are a danger to others, then you may need a crisis service. Please go straight to the Get mental health help now section of Kent County Council’s website.